About this project

I am offering pre-orders for two unique and powerful lights, the HexBright Prime for $35 and the HexBright Flex for $60. Both models are virtually identical looking with an ergonomic, very comfortable grip and use the best available LED light source. The Prime has a max light output of 350 lumens and the Flex has a max light output of 500 lumens. For reference, a good quality $30 brand-name flashlight puts out 100 lumens of light. The major difference between the Prime and Flex models is the HexBright Flex is USB rechargeable and USB programmable. If you want, you can re-write the default code and tweak the HexBright Flex however you desire.

Why do I need a programmable light? What can I do with that? I don't know yet. And that's the point. I want to release the HexBright Flex into the wild and let the community develop original source code. I want to see how brilliant (pun intended) people can be and supply an outlet (hexbright.com) where folks can swap and share ligthing code. I'm not fundraising just to make creative lights, I want to build online creativity.

What about programmable color LEDs? Yep, definitely want to do that, but I am taking baby steps first.

Back story

Just about anywhere you can buy a cheap flashlight with a zillion unnecessary modes (high, med, low, slow blinky, fast blinky, SOS blinky... laser pointer too??). All garbage and the light will usually break on you. I made myself a light the way I wanted it; I picked the best available LED (a CREE XM-L!!!), a good rechargeable battery, built the electronics and programmed it with the only modes I wanted- high, low, and blinky. From necessity (also known as cheapness) I machined the body out of 1" aluminum hex bar stock and came up with a unique elegant look with a surprisingly very comfortable grip.

Based on the aluminum hex-bar body, I named my light the HexBright Prime, and I was pretty happy with it. Then I wanted something better.

It was a no-brainer the next upgrade should have a mini-usb plug right on the board so we could flash direct to the microprocessor. And hey, might as well put a charging circuit on the board to charge the lithium-ion battery right in the HexBright case.

I conceived the HexBright Flex but I was tapped out of cash to actually make one. Kickstarter became an obvious solution. To raise capital I am offering reproductions of my original and first-made HexBright Prime for just $35 or you can pre-order the more powerful and versatile HexBright Flex for $60.

What's the money for?

The money is going toward economies of scale. I need to order at least 1,000 of the most expensive items (CREE XM-L, electronics, optics, batteries) so my fundraising amount is based on making 1,000 HexBrights. Also, I need to make molds and aluminum extrusion dies to reduce manufacturing costs. I machined my original HexBright Prime out of solid hex-bar stock, but if I can have the bar stock made with a hole in the middle I save a ton of time and money and you can pre-order a really great light for a low-low $35 pledge. My primary goal is to put as much of your pledge money into what really matters for a light- the LED, the electronics, optics, and the battery. The sexy, ergonomic, anti-roll grip is just the icing on the cake.

The HexBright Team

It takes talented people to get anything ambitious done. Resident electronics expert Terry is the "bright" behind the HexBright's amazing power.

Terry H. Cooke has 10 plus years in mechanical and electrical design experience. He has worked both in the aerospace industry for NASA and Oribital Launch system as well as designed 3D camera systems for James Cameron and the movie Avatar. His current work includes Lecturing and Research in Mechatronics design for Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo and Contracting work in the medical field.

One more note

If I can raise more than my fundraising goal I will be able to run the HexBright Prime and HexBright Flex through a series of tests to qualify them as "tactical" lights. Tactical lights are typically at least 250 lumens and cost over $200. How cool would it be for you to own a 350 lumen tactical light for a $35 pledge?

Thanks again for reading and I hope you like the unique look of HexBright! I will continue to post more info.

FAQ

If your pledge was declined just login to Kickstarter and click the “Action Needed” system message on the top of your screen. It will redirect you to Amazon, where you can change your payment method. Alternately, we'll send you an email every 48 hours with a direct link to correct the issue. Don't delay, however: backers have seven days to correct payment issues before they are dropped from the project (and therefore no longer eligible to receive rewards).

Short answer- as soon as we can. Long answer- HexBright is not a product already on the shelf ready to be shipped. You are funding development of a top quality product where almost all your money is going into the parts and materials with almost no overhead, marketing or middlemen costs (we are projecting future retail prices to be over $100). As the saying goes, "CHEAP, FAST, GOOD, pick any two". Our price is fixed so we are choosing between "fast" and "good". Good wins every time.

If your pledge was declined just login to Kickstarter and click the “Action Needed” system message on the top of your screen. It will redirect you to Amazon, where you can change your payment method. Alternately, we'll send you an email every 48 hours with a direct link to correct the issue. Don't delay, however: backers have seven days to correct payment issues before they are dropped from the project (and therefore no longer eligible to receive rewards).

No! You can use the easy interface to change basic settings for the FLEX. But you can also have fun experimenting with the source code by changing parameters. If you screw up you can reload the original program.

Rewards

You selected

Pledge $1 or more

20 backers

Thank you! Every dollar helps bring the HexBright and the HexBright open-source lighting community closer to reality.

You selected

Pledge $35 or more

218 backers

Congratulations! You have pre-ordered the compact and powerful HexBright Prime, an amazing 350 lumens in the palm of your hand. The HexBright Prime includes the USA made CREE XM-L super-bright LED and two CR123A lithium batteries. The HexBright Prime is not programmable but has three set modes, high (350 LM), low (200 LM), and blinky. The HexBright Prime will retail on-line for $54.95 but you can pre-order it now for a $35 pledge. Your pledge includes your choice of body color (black, red, green, or blue) and shipping within the USA. Shipping to Canada add $10. International add $15 to pledge amount.

You selected

Pledge $50 or more

17 backers

Personalize your HexBright Prime! I will laser etch your name or a word of your choice (9 letters max) on the HexBright Prime listed above and ship it to you. This will ONLY be available on Kickstarter. Your pledge includes custom etching, your choice of color (black, red, green, or blue) and shipping within the USA. Shipping to Canada add $10. International add $15 to pledge amount.

You selected

Pledge $60 or more

1,669 backers

For a $60 pledge you are pre-ordering and will receive the ultimate 500 LM HexBright Flex with the USA-made CREE XM-L super bright LED. This model is programmable and USB rechargeable. I will ship you the HexBright Flex with a rechargeable lithium-ion battery and a USB cable. No need to buy or replace batteries, just plug your HexBright Flex into any USB port. Plug your HexBright Flex into a computer USB to open-source program it however you want. The HexBright Flex comes shipped with default program modes of high (500 LM), medium (350 LM), low (200 LM), and blinky. The HexBright Flex will retail on-line for $89.99. Your $60 pledge includes choice of color (black, red, green, or blue) and shipping within the USA. Shipping to Canada add $10. International add $15 to pledge amount.

You selected

Pledge $75 or more

294 backers

You guessed it! For a $75 pledge I will laser etch your name or a word of your choice on the HexBright Flex listed above and ship it to you. This will ONLY be available on Kickstarter. Your $75 pledge includes custom etching, your choice of color (black, red, green, or blue) and shipping within the USA. Shipping to Canada add $10. International add $15 to pledge amount.

You selected

Pledge $90 or more

238 backers

The HexBright Twin Pack pre-order gets you both the HexBright Prime (350 lumens) and the HexBright Flex (500 lumens). Choose between black, red, green, or blue. Your $90 pledge includes shipping within the USA. Shipping to Canada add $10. International add $15 to pledge amount.

Pledge $135 or more

62 backers

For a $135 pledge I will laser etch your name or a word of your choice on TWO HexBright Flex and ship it to you. This will ONLY be available on Kickstarter. Your $135 pledge includes custom etching, your choice of color (black, red, green, or blue) and shipping within the USA. Shipping to Canada add $10. International add $15 to pledge amount.

Pledge $270 or more

18 backers

For a $270 pledge I will laser etch your name or a word of your choice on FOUR HexBright Flex and ship it to you. This will ONLY be available on Kickstarter. Your $270 pledge includes custom etching, your choice of color (black, red, green, or blue) and shipping within the USA. Shipping to Canada add $10. International add $15 to pledge amount.